Foreign Minister Westerwelle on20 April 2013called the Deputy Prime Minister ofSerbia, Aleksandar Vučić, and the Foreign Minister of Kosovo, Enver Hoxhaj, to congratulate them on the agreement signed yesterday on the future relations between their two countries.

After making the two phone calls, Foreign Minister Westerwelle issued the following statement:

This is not an easy step for either side. All the more, then, do both sides deserve our respect for the political courage and farsightedness they have shown in finding a compromise which can overcome the difficulties of the past and ease the way to a prosperous, shared future in Europe. I hope that the EU facilitated agreement will now meet with broad acceptance in both countries and that it will be fully implemented in good faith.